This invention relates to telecommunications equipment.
Maintenance Termination Units (MTUs) are utilized in telecommunications equipment to disconnect the end customer from the network in order to determine if any problems are on the customer side or network side of the equipment (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,396,809 issued to Brunssen). Solid state protectors are used to short incoming signals to ground when excess voltage or current appears on the line (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,796,150 issued to Dickey et al). Heretofore, the MTU and protector typically were mounted in separate positions within an enclosure on the side of the customer's home (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,827,504 issued to Collins et al).
In order to reduce the overall size and cost of telecommunications equipment mounted at or near the customer's house, it is desirable to combine both the MTU and protector into a single package.